Art and Science of Laboratory Medicine. Clinical laboratory and biomedical science related news, abstracts and images for medical laboratory professionals, students and other laboratory geeks.

Art and Science of Laboratory Medicine

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

ECDC Report Hepatitis A in Nordic Countries

Hepatitis A infection in Nordic countries
From 1 October 2012 until 5 July 2013, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden reported 59 cases of hepatitis A (HAV). None of the patients had a travel history outside the EU before falling sick.

Overall, 103 HAV cases have been reported to be associated with this outbreak. The identification of closely-related HAV sequences in four different countries confirms that this is a multinational food-borne outbreak. The source has not been confirmed, but investigations in Denmark and Sweden point towards frozen strawberries as vehicle of infection. Food authorities in the affected Nordic countries have recommended boiling of frozen berries or berries of non-domestic origin before consumption.